Scotland’s economy grows 0.3% in 2018 Quarter 3

The Scottish economy grew by 0.3% during the third quarter of 2018, according to statistics announced today by Scotland’s Chief Statistician. Due to methodology improvements implemented over the summer the Quarter 3 data are being published four weeks earlier than in previous years.

Change in gross domestic product (GDP) is the main indicator of economic growth in Scotland. The first estimate of Scotland’s GDP statistics, covering the period July to September 2018, show that the economy grew by 0.3% in real terms compared to the previous quarter. Over the year compared to the third quarter of 2017, the Scottish economy has grown by 1.5%.

During the third quarter of 2018 output in the Services sector grew by 0.3%, output in Production contracted by -0.7% and output in the Construction sector grew by 2.7%.

The second estimate of Scotland’s GDP for 2018 Quarter 3 will be available in Quarterly National Accounts Scotland, published on 30 January 2019.

All results are seasonally adjusted and presented in real terms (adjusted to remove inflation). GDP growth in this publication relates to Scotland’s onshore economy, which means it does not include the output of offshore oil and gas extraction.